Sports Studies
Sociology of sport, alternately referred to as sports sociology, is a sub-discipline of sociology which focuses on sports as social phenomena. It is an area of study concerned with various socio-cultural structures, patterns, and organizations or groups involved with sport.
There are many perspectives through which sport can be viewed. Therefore, very often some binary divisions are stressed, such as: professional vs. amateur, mass vs. top-level, active vs. passive/spectator, men vs. women, sports vs. play (as an antithesis to organized and institutionalized activity). Following feminist or other reflexive and tradition-breaking paradigms sports are sometimes studied as contested activities, i.e. as activities in the centre of various people/groups interests (connection of sports and gender, mass media, or state-politics).
In most premodern societies, the gender role for females and males in sports was reinforced at a young age. The sociology that formed surrounding sports enforced the idea that sports were too masculine for women and are encouraged to play noncompetitive games while men were able to compete. The impact of sports and games was to prepare young children for adulthood. The separation between the roles of men and women in a society of sports is expressed through media and gender identity. On media, the sports viewership varies by gender. Men's sports are more prominent in the media versus women's sports and the sports broadcast vary. On NCAA news, the text and text space greater than 2:1 coverage of men’s sports over women’s, the pictures are around 2:1 male athletes over female athletes. For males the sports typically include football, hockey, baseball, soccer, basketball, pro wrestling and boxing, while women's sports covers figure skating, gymnastics, skiing, and diving. There is a contrast in the sports for each gender: the men's sports include confrontative, combative coordination and the women's sports are less aggressive and more individual and stylish. Participation in “masculine” sports creates gender identity conflict for females, likewise participation in “feminine” sports creates gender identity conflict for males.
The emergence of the sociology of sport (though not the name itself) dates from the end of the 19th century, when first social psychological experiments dealing with group effects of competition and pace-making took place. Besides cultural anthropology and its interest in games in the human culture, one of the first efforts to think about sports in a more general way was Johan Huizinga's Homo Ludens or Thorstein Veblen's Theory of the Leisure Class. In 1970, sports sociology gained significant attention as an organized, legitimate field of study. The North American Society for the Sociology of Sport was formed in 1978 with the objective of studying the field. Its research outlet, the Sociology of Sport Journal, was formed in 1984.
Today, most sports sociologists identify with at least one of four essential theories that define the relationship between sports and society, namely structural functionalism, conflict theory, critical theory, and symbolic interactionism.
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Matching Sports Studies Colleges
Western Kentucky University
Four or more years; Public; $25,512 average out-state tuition; $10,202 average in-state tuition |
National University
Four or more years; Private not for profit; $13,032 average out-state tuition; $13,032 average in-state tuition |
Manhattanville College
Four or more years; Private not for profit; $36,460 average out-state tuition; $36,460 average in-state tuition |
St. Thomas Aquinas College
Four or more years; Private not for profit; $29,950 average out-state tuition; $29,950 average in-state tuition |
Argosy University-Phoenix Online Division
Four or more years; Private for profit; $13,344 average out-state tuition; $13,344 average in-state tuition |
John F. Kennedy University
Four or more years; Private not for profit; $23,280 average out-state tuition; $23,280 average in-state tuition |
Upper Iowa University
Four or more years; Private not for profit; $28,850 average out-state tuition; $28,850 average in-state tuition |
Scholarships for Sports Studies Majors
AIANTA Tourism and Hospitality ScholarshipAmerican Indian Alaska Native Tourism Association (AIANTA) |
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award $2,000 |
deadline April 28, 2023 |
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Science and Technology Scholarship - Lakeland UniversityLakeland University |
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award 100% of tuition |
deadline November 20, 2023 |
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The Dr. Robert N. Horrocks, Dr. Daniel B. Switchenko and Dr. Neil Williams Founders of Health and PhEastern Connecticut State University |
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award Varies |
deadline Varies |
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Ruth Soules Memorial ScholarshipFinger Lakes Health Foundation |
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award Varies |
deadline Varies |
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Kitty Wigsten Memorial ScholarshipFinger Lakes Health Foundation |
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award Varies |
deadline Varies |
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Howard Dayton School of Business Endowed ScholarshipAsbury University |
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award Varies |
deadline Varies |
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Deb and Eric Beaudry Athletic ScholarshipColorado State University-Pueblo |
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award Varies |
deadline June 01, 2023 |
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CSU Pueblo Graduate Education Scholarship - Athletic TrainingColorado State University-Pueblo |
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award Varies |
deadline June 01, 2023 |
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Mason Forever Foundation Scholarship for Health and FitnessMason Forever Foundation |
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award Varies |
deadline July 31, 2023 |
Sports Studies Related Majors
- Exercise Science and Kinesiology
- Sport and Fitness Administration/Management
- Sports, Kinesiology, and Physical Education/Fitness
- Parks, Recreation, and Leisure Studies
- Parks, Recreation, and Leisure Facilities Management
- Physical Fitness Technician
- Sports Fitness, Kinesiology, Parks, and Leisure Studies
- Outdoor Education
- Golf Course Operation and Grounds Management